Venereal disease: A disease that is contracted and transmitted by sexual contact, caused by microorganisms that survive on the skin or mucus membranes, or that are transmitted via semen, vaginal secretions, or blood during intercourse. The genital areas provide a moist, warm environment that is especially conducive to the proliferation of bacteria, viruses, and yeasts, so a great many diseases can be transmitted this way, including AIDS, chlamydia, genital warts, gonorrhea, syphilis, yeast infections, and some forms of hepatitis. Also known as a Morbus venereal or sexually transmitted disease (STD). See: sexually transmitted diseases in men, sexually transmitted diseases in women

Treatment FAQs: 

What are the Incubation Periods of Common STDs?

You just had sex with a new partner, and now you’re starting to itch. Are you just paranoid? Or could you have picked up an STD? Learn how quickly symptoms do, and don’t, appear for some of the most common STDs.

What is the Difference Between a Cold Sore, a Canker Sore, and a Chancre?

A lot of people get confused about the difference between a cold sore and a canker sore and don’t know which are infectious and which are not. Still, others hear “canker” and “chancre” and think they’re the same thing! Here’s a quick guide to the three types of sores.